By Chesa Chesa
Signature TV has launched the Season 2 of its flagship anti-corruption campaign – ‘Corruption Tori’ – in pidgin English and three main Nigerian languages, with a plan for essay competitions among primary and secondary school students across the country.
Funded by MacArthur Foundation, and fully supported by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) since 2018, ‘Corruption Tori’ preaches against corruption with special investigative reports and mini documentaries on issues of corruption, including those of high-profile government officials, across Nigeria.
The programme, produced in Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and pidgin English languages, is aired on the network service of Africa Independent Television (AIT) and syndicated to Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) partner stations, spread in the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.
At a ceremony in Abuja to launch the second season of the campaign, the Chief Executive Officer of Signature TV, Mr. VinMartin Obiora Ilo, said that the strategy would build on the success of Season 1 while attempting to ensure not-so-educated Nigerians feel a sense of ownership of the anti-corruption fight.
Among the new initiatives will be the Corruption Tori National Essay Competition, Corruption Tori Awards, Corruption Tori School Ambassadors programme.
Mr. Ilo announced that other measures to make Season 2 more impactful, disclosing that “26 Episodes of Corruption Tori are to be produced in Pidgin and translated into 104 episodes in three Nigerian languages.
“We will be taking our production away from the studio frequently and doing more at locations where our viewers live; more of our topics, reports and stories are being taken from their local environment.
“Our social media activities are being strengthened and will be more intentional, interactive and relate to the everyday issues our audience worry and care about.
“We are paying more attention to stories about anti corruption wins, identifying, honouring and featuring individuals and organizations showing exemplary behavior and distinguishing themselves in the anti-corruption fight.”
He stressed that “the objective is to cause attitudinal change and make Nigerians demand accountability and transparency by holding leaders to account”.
Highlighting the milestones of Season 1, Mr. Ilo said 92 episodes of Corruption Tori were produced and broadcast in Pidgin English, while 368 episodes were translated and broadcast in Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.
Also, “we produced and broadcast 53 Special Reports on diverse corruption issues. We published a 214 page book in collaboration with International Press Institute, entitled Media and Elections. The book among other things is a guide for journalists on a corruption free election coverage”.
Among the challenges that Signature TV’s were confronted with during the campaign included difficulty in accessing information from public officers, their refusal to take action when reports indict them but spend resources in frustrating and ” killing” the reports, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic that frustrated some strategic engagements which needed physical contact and stretched available finances.
Special guest on the occasion and Chairman of ICPC, Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, expressed happiness with the focus of Signature TV as it was in line with mandate of the Commission to unearth corruption in the country.
Represented by a Commissioner in the ICPC, Hassan Salihu, he said the work was important because the impact and extension of corruption has started threatening national security, and all hands are required to be on deck now.
He however, acknowledged that those being exposed for corruption are fighting back, even as he lamented that sometimes, the press unwittingly abet the criminals by given them undeserving publicity.
Also, Country Director of MacArthur Foundation, Dr. Kole Shettima, described Corruption Tori as an experiment that turned out to be successfully delivered by Signatures TV, so much that the Foundation did not hesitate to approve the funding for Season 2 of the project.
He pledged that the Foundation would continue to help revive, develop and entrench Nigerian local languages while supporting advocacy causes like anti-corruption.
He gave the assurance that MacArthur Foundation would continue to partner with Signature TV because it understands the need to visualise and dramatise the issues of corruption as that tends to sink in deeper in the people’s consciousness more than just reading about them in printed newspaper copies does.
